The Personal BS O’Meter for the Independent Dentist.

As an independent dentist there are many ways that the minority in the profession who attain advanced clinical skills, credentials, or specialty training try to be successful at providing a higher level of services to patients who have serious dental problems.

It takes a lot to attain the clinical skills and it takes even more non-clinically to pull it all together as an independent dentist.

Here are a few things to think about or to ask yourself that may convince you to consider to change or motivate yourself and to take back control of your independent dentist practice and yourself if you want better results when it comes to advanced procedures:

1. Is what you are doing working? If not, why continue to do it that way?
2. Can you scale this without cutting quality and/or profits?
3. Is your practice stress higher than necessary?
4. Are you happy with your cases and routines?
5. Do you work on Fridays and/or Saturdays?
6. Does your office have the right environmental context for selling?
7. Do patients enjoy what they are getting and how it gets delivered?
8. Is your clinical work negatively impacting your personal or family life?
9. Is there any aspect of your practice that may not be compliant be licensing guidelines?
10. Do you work hard AND smart?
11. Are you a good communicator and if not what are you doing about it?
12. Are you likable enough?
13. Are you healthy and fit?
14. Is your staff well trained and is training a structured routine?
15. Are you problem or solution oriented?
16. Do you give patients what they want or do you talk at them, “educate” and try to sell them what you think they need?
17. Are you an equally good at selling and being a doctor?
18. Are you confident in yourself and abilities?
19. As a whole, does your entire practice have its main act together?
20. Can you relate to your patients and can they relate to you?
21. Are you comfortable sharing with strangers what you do for a living and concisely saying it in ways that go beyond “just a dentist?”
22. Do patients find you interesting or like “milquetoast”?
23. Do you care what people think especially those who aren’t paying you?
24. Do you know any Dentists personally who are better at practice than you? What can or should you learn from them?
25. Do you take 100% responsibility for your success and failure?

From time to time, all of us (me included) must re-evaluate every aspect of our business and be honest with what’s going on. There’s not a single one of us that doesn’t fall into “b.s.” mentality. The difference is realizing it when it’s happened and then getting out of that mode.

The more honest you are, the more responsible you become because RESPONSIBILITY = CONTROL of the things we can influence in our practice’s and lives. Trying reading my book on Amazon to help with more ways to rise above your peers.

The more responsibility you take the more control you will have and that’s how you get what you want out of business and out of life. It is one big feedback loop. Learn more and join other like minded independent dentists here.